Eat Bars, Build a Better World

I love when I can feel good about eating something, not just because it's good for me but because the product is tied to some good cause. Take, for example, FLYJOY bars! They're vegan, all-natural, non-GMO, gluten-free, and the company donates 10 percent of its profits to HOPE International, a nonprofit that provides business training, a safe place to save, and microloans to the world’s poorest families. Like so many bar companies, this one was founded by a dude — Curtis Bomgaars — who just wanted to make healthy bars in his kitchen. And he wanted to help people in need too. It's an inspiring story, and you can read that here.

FLYJOY sent me some bars to sample. Look at all the colorful wrappers! They even came in a cute, reusuable cloth bag. Even though I didn't pay for this batch, I know I'll be buying more because these are high up on my list of favorite bars of all time.

Here's why I love them: Not only are they made with a healthy base of quinoa, oats, flax, and chia, they're also incredibly tasty and the texture is the perfect combination of chewy and crunchy from the turbinado sugar.

First, I tried the Peanut Cacao Nib. This was the chewiest of all the bars, and it has a strong peanutty taste. I'm a sucker for all things peanut, so this was probably my fave. I could see the nibs, but I didn't get much flavor from them. But that was fine with me. Also, loved how the salty peanut butter and the brown rice syrup and turbinado made for a salty-sweet flavor.

I always pick nutty flavors over fruity ones, so next up, I tried the Cashew Cookie Dough. This one was still chewy, but it was a tad softer than the PB bar. This was the perfect fuel before a short walk/run followed by a nice yoga session. Loved the strong cashew butter taste!

Next up — Coconut Almond. Because of the coconut base, this one was a tad oilier, but that's to be expected when coconut is involved. The almond butter base was just perfect with the coconut flakes. Sorry for the low-lit picture. But I had this bar early in the morning before the sun came up! Great fuel for my morning strength training session.

Blueberry Almond was my fave of the fruity ones. Big chunks of blueberry, crunchy roasted almonds. YUM! Enjoyed this after work one day when I knew dinner plans were still hours away, and it kept me satisfied until then.

Cranberry Almond was basically the same as the blueberry bar but with cranberry pieces instead. Loved biting inside to discover whole, roasted almonds!

Finally, I tried the Cherry Coconut one morning on the car ride to the gym for my 6:15 a.m. "butts and guts" class. The cherries were the sour kind, which contrasted with the bar's sweetness. Really loved this bar!

As you can see, I loved every one of these bars! And they did a great job tiding me over through my morning workouts and afternoon breaks before dinner. I'll definitely be seeking out more of these soon!